02 Awaken-The Soulkeepers

by Adams, Lori

  Baron and Brigitte consider us, individually and at length, and I start to worry. I glance nervously at Bailey; she is pale and as stiff as a board.

  Suddenly, Baron and Brigitte break into smiles and laughter and stand, welcoming us with open arms.

  Dante leads us over and inclines his head respectfully. Baron and Brigitte reciprocate with a slight bow.

  “Demon Knight Dante Dannoso!” Baron bellows jovially. “It’s truly an honor. Please come. Sit.” He wants the chairs vacated but Dante holds up his hand.

  “My guests and I thoroughly enjoyed your performance, Baron Samedi, Maman Brigitte, but I am afraid we cannot stay. I am in need of High Alice.”

  Brigitte’s chin goes up; she doesn’t look hostile but not exactly happy, either. More, suspicious. “High Alice does not leave La Croix,” she says in a deep, sultry voice.

  Dante faces her with a pleasant smile. I can see that he’s making an effort to be polite but is in no mood for games or complications. He tilts his head as though amused by her comment. Brigitte’s eyes flutter. She grows nervous, having Dante’s full attention. Baron looks sharply at his wife as though she’s causing trouble.

  Wait—this powerful couple that controls the Crossroads to and from Hell is afraid of Dante?

  I look at him with fresh eyes, and reality dawns. Dante has some unspoken authority over them—even without the use of Persuasion. He’s more powerful, and this is both impressive and frightening. Once again, I wonder just who he is and how I’ll outmaneuver him to get my way.

  “Of course! High Alice would love to visit!” Baron says overdramatically. He’s trying to recover the mood and his wife’s mistake of countering Dante. “This way, if you please.” He gestures toward the red-eyed demon, who is standing by. The demon opens the door to another cavernous hallway.

  Dante starts over but I pull him aside and whisper, “High Alice is an old friend of Bailey’s so, if you don’t mind, it’ll be just us girls? Some quick catching up and stuff. You know? And then we’ll get the book and leave.” I smile with honey, but Dante eyes me speculatively. The last thing I want is Dante in the room while we explain to High Alice the real reason we need the book.

  Dante doesn’t like it and his eyes flick toward the hallway. Vaughn goes over to investigate. He nods that everything seems copacetic, and Dante reluctantly agrees.

  “Five minutes, Sophia. That is all.” He gives me a stern look, and I grab Bailey and we go.

  The demon leads us down the hall. It’s a short walk and then we stop. He leaves us at a door so Bailey knocks and then opens it. We step inside a small room crammed with hundreds of books. Everywhere are books, scrolls, maps. The shelves are lined with volumes, ancient and fat and brown. Some are crumbling and some are held together by crystal ball bookends.

  Bailey sees High Alice perched on a ledge, reading a manuscript, and she squeals with delight. They throw themselves together, hugging and rocking side to side. I stand there gawking. I didn’t know what to expect from High Alice but she surprises me.

  She is very pale, tall and wiry, with long, lean muscles beneath her black T-shirt and red skinny jeans. Her head is shaved about two inches above each ear, and a mop of black and white hair with red tips is spiked up in every direction. She has several bolts through her left eyebrow, a red nose ring, and a green tattoo in the shaved spaces above each ear. The tattoos are eyes that stare when she turns her head. They freak me the hell out.

  Only one of her real eyes is lined with kohl, giving the appearance that the other one is dead and not worth the effort. When they finally pull apart and High Alice looks at me, she smiles knowingly and I sense that I’m no surprise.

  “Hey, Sophia, how’s it going?”

  “Hey, Alice. Nice to meet you.” I grow flustered because I don’t know where to start. I find myself staring at her mouth; she has a tattoo on her tongue like the symbols on the wall outside: a heart and a cross flanked by two coffins.

  She laughs and says, “So, you want a do-over, huh?”

  Bailey says, “It was my idea. Pretty sweet, huh? But listen, Alice, do you really wanna stay here? I mean, that Brigitte chick said you can’t leave. You want us to get you out?” Bailey starts moving about the place, touching things and wrinkling her nose.

  “No, I’m cool,” Alice says, watching Bailey with an amused grin. “I’m here ’cause I wanna be.”

  “Why?” Bailey asks, and High Alice looks at me when she answers.

  “I got a purpose here.” Her statement is flat and knowing, and I’m to understand. We are the same, with a purpose to fulfill. Bailey asks what her purpose is, but High Alice won’t answer.

  “We don’t have much time,” she says instead. “And I believe I know what you’re after. I’m cool with you using the book but here’s the deal. This edition of the Book of the Dead is sort of attached to me. It’s important to what I do, so I made a binding spell. It goes where I go. Of course, I can modify it because, well, I’m the one who made the spell. I’ll release it to you, Sophia, but once the spell you use is completed, the book will dissolve and return to me.”

  I nod. “Does it matter which spell?” I ask, and she says no, so I consider something I hadn’t actually thought of before. “Is there … a spell to, say, bring up memories from a past life?”

  Bailey has been poking around the room and looks up at my question. We stare and I know what she’s thinking—that I’m starting to believe Dante’s story that I have the soul of his lost lover. Not quite.

  High Alice assesses our visual conversation with a glint in her eye. She’s wondering what I’m up to. Apparently, this isn’t something she has foreseen. “Yes, there is. But the book is only good for one spell before it dissolves. So if you’re choosing between two spells, do so wisely because I won’t part with it again.”

  “I understand.” I take a deep breath and expel Dante from my thoughts. “Now, what can you tell me about this doubling spell?”

  We take a seat on a stack of books, and High Alice explains what Rama has told me; we need the book for the general spell but also the supplement, the Papyrus of Ani for some important details. Since we are using the Egyptian Book of the Dead to cast the spell, what we’ll create is called a Ka, or a double. She tells me to be cautious with the process; the incantation must be clearly enunciated and at a methodical tempo. Never interrupted. Creating a Ka is a delicate procedure, and when the time comes, I must be sure to stay completely still. Doubles do not split evenly, and we don’t want the Ka to have too many vital elements. We’ll share memories of past events and people so the Ka may integrate smoothly into my life, but we should stay relatively close. Ka should never be too far away or our connection will risk being broken.

  “And what happens if the connection is broken?”

  “Then you’ll have a very difficult time returning to whole during the Apoctastasis, a process that reverses the doubling spell. Both forms, meaning you and your Ka, must be present to reconstitute the original to the primordial state.” She looks grim and serious. “Some people may have a Ka for a lifetime, if they abide by the basic binary laws like the McCarthy twins have done. For what you’re trying to achieve—becoming a spirit walker—you may split your elements, giving part of yourself to your Ka so that you can complete your training. But it’s best if you’re whole in the spirit world. Sophia, you understand that it’s very dangerous business to walk among the dead? You’ll need every one of your vital elements functioning. It’s that simple. Stay close to you Ka.”

  “I will.”

  “But I doubt you can explain to everyone that you have a long-lost twin like Gracie McCarthy got away with, so you and your Ka must come and go separately.”

  “I’m helping with that,” Bailey pipes up.

  “But what about this Apoctastasis thing? Is that a spell we’ll need from the book?”

  “Once the doubling spell is cast and the book has dissolved, what remains in the ash is a fragile slip of parchment with the Apoc
tastasis incantation. Like I said, you’ll need it in order to return to your original state. Keep it safe until you’re ready to use it. Then it will be spoken only by you in the presence of your Ka. I suggest you lay down for both spells. Makes the transition easier and nobody falls.” She smiles and I nod. “And now, we’d better do this before your demon friends bust in on us. The one called Dante is very protective of you, huh?”

  Bailey and I look at each other, not really surprised that High Alice would know about Dante and Vaughn. Still, her comment about Dante is unnerving.

  High Alice disappears behind a wall of books and rummages around. She returns with a large, flat book. It’s aged with brushed gold, a copper spine, and leather straps with brass buckles. She holds it out so that I can place my hand next to hers on the cover. When she intertwines our fingers, tiny electric impulses pass between us. My eyes snap to hers but she is chanting with her eyes closed. The impulses travel up my arm until they dissolve, and we are done. Then she steps back and I take the book. It’s heavy with knowledge, and I hold it against my stomach, wrapping my coat around it. She walks us to the door and hugs Bailey good-bye.

  “Tell Aunt Minnie hello and that I’m fine here. She’s got to stop worrying.” She looks at me. “And you … be cautious, Sophia. Your soul mate is very eager to have things settled between you.”

  I want to ask what the hell that means but she ushers us out just as Dante and Vaughn walk up the corridor. Obviously anxious to leave, Dante takes my arm, pulling me away. I don’t argue; I’m not fond of this place either, and I’m reeling from High Alice’s parting words.

  We return to the main room, which has reverted to its previous state with human chandeliers, the dangling demented, and the morbid musicians. The dance floor is packed and Dante pushes through, heading for the stairwell on the far side. It will lead us up and out the main door. We’re nearly there when Marquis Naberius walks down the metal mesh steps and stops at the bottom. His pale face and black hair give him a translucent, Transylvanian effect. His cold dead eyes settle on Dante.

  “Ciao, Dante. I’m sorry we could not visit earlier, I was entertaining a guest.” He takes a deliberate look at me and then Bailey. I feel her grip the back of my coat. She’s unnerved like I am.

  “Ciao, Naberius. It has been a long time. But if you will excuse us, we have another engagement.” Dante is cool but tense as he waits for the marquis to step aside. He doesn’t. He is anticipating something, or someone. And then Chax, the guy obsessed with silver, strides up. He’s without his triangle of truth and is staring at me.

  “This the one?” he asks the marquis, and then reaches for my throat. Dante reacts in a swift, unseen flash that knocks Chax backward. I clutch the lucky charm beneath my shirt and stumble backward. Bailey clings to me, and I have to struggle to keep the book from falling.

  Vaughn whispers, “Do not speak,” and then steps between us and the other demons.

  The marquis moves in, and the four demons square off. It’s clear they want my lucky charm, with or without my throat attached. The marquis tries to convince Dante to give it up in exchange for something else he might want. Dante warns him to move aside or risk losing a hand, or something of greater value. I don’t get it, and the marquis doesn’t appear amused. He pulls a sword from inside his cane. Chax yanks a silver cross from his neck and unsheathes the dagger hidden inside. Dante and Vaughn are suddenly at a disadvantage. I glance around for an escape but there’s nowhere to go. Lesser demons are starting to gather and watch. I suppose it’s amusing when royal demons go bad.

  The last time I saw Dante and Vaughn fight, they were killed by Michael and Gabe. But even then they had weapons.

  Dante moves slowly, keeping his eyes on the marquis and the sword. Vaughn is toying with Chax, almost begging to be cut. I see Affliction swirling in his eyes and know things could get bloody. Bailey’s face is alive with terror and fascination as she watches Vaughn taunt Chax into attacking.

  “You may choose to reconsider, Naberius,” Dante says. “Now is your last chance. You will not get what you’re after and you will leave here minus both your hands.”

  “Your arrogance has exceeded your ability, Demon Knight. I do not succumb to compulsion and you are not armed.” He smiles coldly, and Dante raises his hands in surrender. Then he jerks his arms down, and daggers appear in his hands. Vaughn copies the move, and both are quickly armed with ancient weapons. I’ve seen these daggers before. They are the tattoos from Dante’s arms, and I stare in wonder as he whips them around with unnatural speed. He spins and slashes, catching the marquis off guard. A bloody black X appears across his chest. The marquis staggers in shock. He didn’t see it coming. Dante and Vaughn attack quick and hard, the blades ripping through the air. A fiery green streak, like the tail of a comet, follows each blade. The supernatural weapons slice through the demons with the efficiency of samurai swords. Vaughn cuts Chax in half, and his upper body slowly slides off and flops to the floor. The Demon of Affliction tips his head back and moans with pleasure, his eyes rolling in his head and a smile spreading across his face. The marquis stares in horror and then whips around in a motion to raise his sword against Dante. A streak of green flashes in his eyes, and the sword and hand are no longer attached to his arm. He cries in sudden anguish and reaches for his wounded arm but a second flash of green takes his other hand. Both hands lay on the floor, and the marquis stumbles away yelling curses.

  Dante and Vaughn challenge the crowd, but no one wants to continue what the marquis and Chax have started. They back away and leave us alone.

  Dante and Vaughn snap their arms again and the blades retract to a hissing sound. Then Dante turns and looks at me, his eyes blazing like the green fire from his weapons. He has a fierce, deadly expression that I’ve never seen before. He searches my face, wanting to know what I’m thinking. I don’t know what to think but I instinctively flinch when he reaches for my hand. His hand is scorching against mine but he squeezes, forcing me to endure it. He doesn’t apologize, and I realize, for the first time, just how dangerous Dante is.

  I suddenly want the calm, aristocratic Dante back, so I murmur, “I didn’t know you were such a badass.” My voice trembles and kills the smile I’m trying to form.

  Something dark flickers across his eyes and Dante leans closer. “Yes, you do,” he says through clenched teeth. Then he pulls me up the stairs, just as I feel three hard tugs on my heart.

  Chapter 20

  Michael

  Two Halo candidates surrendered during the final days of the second trial. They left Michael and the two remaining to endure the brutal physical punishment dubbed red week, named for the journey through fire and molten lava but also for the copious amount of bloodshed. Michael performed well, despite his distracting thoughts of Sophia. He was plagued with guilt over their last encounter when he’d purposely humiliated her at the barn. He’d meant only to teach her a lesson—that playing around with Milvi was no indication of the evil she would face in the spirit world. It was no laughing matter, and seeing her so careless had sent him over the edge.

  Chief Master Sachiel, with his red beard and sharp eyes, called for attention, pulling Michael from his thoughts. He stood erect, tucked his hands behind his back, and deadened his emotions.

  “We begin the final trial: battle strategies and weapon warfare,” he announced. Michael immediately felt his fellow candidates’ flood of emotions; they were relieved the second trial was over. It was by far the most physically grueling trial they’ve had to endure. Everyone looked forward to arming themselves and discovering the Halo secret to permanently killing demons. Decapitating demons was fine if you were in a hurry, but it only sent them below where they could regenerate. No, there was a better way—the death kill—and the candidates were eager to learn.

  Squad Master Camael took over, leading each candidate to a sitting area. He began his lecture on the basic understanding of Halo warfare and battle configurations, specifically the tortoise formation, wh
ich the Halos often used. It was very effective when combating legions of demons that attempted to advance on a particular territory. On occasion, one of the Five Kingdoms of Hell warred with another, and their legions would enter the Borderland to ambush each other. Most often, the Halos were waiting with an ambush of their own, destroying as many demons as possible.

  The candidates also learned the silent signals in order to switch from fight formation to flight formation without missing a beat. They discussed standard rescue operations, demonic removal in high target areas, and shock force where bands of Halos attacked from above or launched balls of light to sweep an area clear of all demonic activity. No slash, just burn policy.

  After a battle has ended, Halo warriors rotated out of their band so that anyone who had a permanent kill could cleanse their light for a period of seven days. Once the warrior had balanced his energy, he could reenter the squad for duty.

  “And now we have one last technique to learn.” Camael’s expression grew cold, deadly. He knew what the candidates wanted and was happy to give it to them. The secret to a permanent kill. “Complete and final destruction of a demon requires a highly specialized skill set that some of you may never possess—precise timing, direct aim, and swift speed. Do not be discouraged. It may come in time. If you think you can achieve a permanent kill, do not decapitate the demon. Understand? It’s crucial that the head remain intact during the process.”

  He raised his hand, clawing two fingers and a thumb. “And this is your weapon of choice. Your bare hand. Once you have incapacitated the demon with your dagger or sword, you will penetrate the back of the neck and yank out the spine. Your target is less than five inches wide, so you must be accurate on the take. When your fingers reach bone, the demon, who may be struggling like hell, will instantly yield. One hard yank, and the demon is forever severed. So, obviously, you gotta get close to the sons of bitches. And they know what you’re up to. What they’re likely to do is throw their heads back, making it impossible to dig into the neck. It’s the coward’s way out ’cause then they expel themselves through the mouth, usually some damned green smoke, yellow vapor, or red fog, depending on what kind of miscreant you’ve got. Once they’re airborne, they got a free ride and you got shit.